A couple months ago, news began springing up online saying that Marvel Studios had selected Drew Goddard as the director of their upcoming Spider-Man movie. This made a degree of sense, given that Goddard had previously worked with Marvel on the Daredevil Netflix series, and even had some connections to Spider-Man thanks to his development of Sinister Six with Sony. If new reports are to be believed, however, the race to find a Spider-Man director is still on – and apparently Drew Goddard is no longer in the running.
Deadline has published what they claim to be a shortlist of directors who are currently being considered by Marvel for the Spider-Man gig, and it’s definitely an interesting group. You can read about all five of the possible choices below:
Jonathan Levine
Writer/director Jonathan Levine made his first big box office success with Warm Bodies back in 2013, but the truth is that the guy has been doing great stuff just slightly under the radar for years. He began turning heads with The Wackness in 2008, but scored huge with critics making the 2011 cancer dramedy 50/50 starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen. It should be noted that this isn’t the first time that Levine has found himself on a shortlist for a Marvel Studios project, as there were talks last year that said he was one of the candidates to potentially make Doctor Strange (that gig wound up going to Scott Derrickson).
Ted Melfi
Though he only made his directorial debut last year, up-and-comer Ted Melfi is clearly starting to turn heads. His film St. Vincent - which he also wrote – got a positive reception from critics when it was released in 2014, and while Bill Murray was the real headliner of that project, it’s understandable why Melfi might be targeted for Spider-Man. This is because he actually got a rather fantastic performance out of young actor Jaeden Lieberher, who was starring in his first feature film. Given that Marvel is looking to cast a legitimately teenage actor to play Peter Parker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it makes sense to hire a filmmaker who knows how to get a good turn out of a young performer.
Jason Moore
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige has said that one portion of the Spider-Man character the Marvel Cinematic Universe will definitely capitalize on is the humor of the hero, and that very well could explain why Jason Moore is one of the filmmakers that they are considering. After spending years in television, Moore only broke out in features a couple years ago, but did so in a big way making the surprise 2012 hit Pitch Perfect. Since then he has been working on the Tina Fey-Amy Poehler comedy Sisters, which will be hitting theaters this December.
John Francis Daley & Jonathan M. Goldstein
Remember what I was saying about the comedic approach to the project? That sentiment definitely goes the same for John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein. The two filmmakers actually only entered into the directing game very recently with their debut Vacation - due out in theaters this summer – but they have been behind some big titles in the last few years as writers, working on projects like Horrible Bosses, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone and the animated Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2. If they are ultimately chosen by Marvel, it will definitely have us judging Vacation a whole lot differently.
Jared Hess
Jared Hess’ career has been one of ups and downs since breaking out in 2004 with Napoleon Dynamite, since making less successful titles like 2006’s Nacho Libre starring Jack Black, and 2009’s Gentlemen Broncos with Jemaine Clement. After a six year absence from the big screen, however, Hess is actually back in a big way in 2015, releasing not only the mystery comedy Don Verdean with Sam Rockwell, and the crime laugher Masterminds starring Kristen Wiig, Owen Wilson, and Zach Galifianakis.
Of these options, who would you like to see take the helm of Marvel and Sony’s 2017 Spider-Man movie? Answer in our poll below, and tell us what you think in the comments section.
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